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+--- Thread: Your character is granted three wishes, but the third wish... (/showthread.php?tid=7891)
Your character is granted three wishes, but the third wish... - Nero - 08-06-2014
...must inflict harm on the individual they care about the most.
Apologies if the title ellipses seemed needlessly dramatic, but the subject line for threads was too short, and I couldn't think of a way to condense it properly. @_@
Anyway, it's a slow Wednesday for me, so I figured I'd try my hand at a character development prompt thing (wow such eloquence). This is a pretty generic one as far as prompts go, but it might be fun for some people to do.
For the sake of simplicity, harm inflicted should be roughly proportional to the other two wishes. Example: "I wish for a sandwich and a single sunny day" can be followed up with "I wish <x> stubs their toe particularly hard." Conversely, "I wish for immortality and infinite riches" should be followed up with "I wish <x> suffers torment for eternity," or something along those lines. Â
Harm does not need to be purely physical or mental, so long as it is unambiguously detrimental. "I wish <x> loses all of their worldly wealth", or "I wish <x> loses all of their skill in <y>" would be applicable.
If your character, for whatever reason, has multiple "people s/he cares for most", then they will have to choose among them.
For selfish, sociopathic, or narcissistic characters, the third wish must inflict harm on themselves. This also applies to characters who are isolationists or characters who otherwise have no person who could be defined as the one your character cares about most.
Also, no loopholes or paradoxes.
Anyway, the purpose of this prompt is less about the actual wishes, and more about answering a few of the following questions.
EDIT--Alternate Premise: Your character must make two wishes that harm themselves, but may grant the benefits of the third wish to someone else. Bring out the masochists!
-Would your character use the wishes to begin with? If yes, how would they justify it? If no, would your character feel regretful of not taking the wishes in the future?
-What would your character wish for? Is there anything they believe worth sacrificing or harming themselves or others for? Does your character believe in ideals? Does your character hold their goals above the wellbeing of those they care about? What does your character value? Why would they obtain it through a wish, rather than traditional means?
-Does your character believe that the ends justify the means? If yes, when? If no, do they believe that good results from contemptible methods have no value, regardless of the circumstances? Why?Â
-Does your character believe that the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few? Would they make large wishes for the fortune of all, sacrificing the few for the many, or small wishes for the sake of their loved one's health? For selfish characters, do they believe that their own wellbeing and health comes before other personal advancements such as wealth or social status?
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-How would your character contend with the knowledge of what they are responsible for? How does your character cope with guilt or loss? How do they react to the injury or damage that their loved one, or they themselves, must endure?
-What harm would they inflict, and why? Would they make the harm mild but lasting, so as to minimise the effects, or intense and instant so that it is over quickly? What aspects about their lives or the lives of others do they consider expendable?
RE: Your character is granted three wishes, but the third wish... - Warren Castille - 08-06-2014
Unacceptable terms!
...but I'll mull it over and get back to you when I come up with something appropriately tragic.
RE: Your character is granted three wishes, but the third wish... - QueenFrejyalen - 08-06-2014
I do not believe that Queen would utilize the three wishes; she would not be able to justify, in her heart, that hurting another was worth the personal reward.
Now, if her companions are involved, they would have a few things to say. Â Keyu, her best friend, would be trying to change her mind: Â "C'mon, m'lady! Â I can withstand it, use me and reap the benefits! Â Just don't scar up my face, and I'll be fine!"
Her fiance Rahdias and her preceptor Waaruna would likely counter that "such powers are too unpredictable and dangerous to chance" and that "we do not know the origin of this wish-granter, and thus cannot trust it."
Overall, Queen would probably just tell them all: Â "If I were a woman who waited on wishes, I would not have come so far as I have!"
Intriguing question, thanks for that! Â =3
RE: Your character is granted three wishes, but the third wish... - Faye - 08-06-2014
Faye Covington was a practical woman. Most of the time, at least. Enough so that if someone offered her a limitless wish, she'd stare at him incredulously, wonder if he were mad, and ask what the catch was. Of course, in this case, she had no reason to ask. The stipulation was made loud and clear. She peered down at the parchment laid out over the surface of her polished, mahogany desk, sky blue eyes sweeping over the neatly printed words.
Three wishes; two limitless, the stipulation being that the third harmed the person she cared for the most equivalent to the complexity of her wishes. She didn't bother to wonder how or why yet. Instead, the first question to spring to her mind was yes or no?
She had plenty of things, material and otherwise, but the Midlander was ever ambitious; there were even more things that she wanted. Her desires were so numerous she couldn't even list them all. There were selfish things: vengeance to be had, talents and wealth and power beyond what she already possessed. And there were more selfless things: to deliver Eorzea from suffering at the hands of Garleans and Primals, to watch the people she loved flourish in happiness and success.
But who did she care for the most? Her husband, of course--the only person to truly understand her and love her unconditionally, the man she was blessed to come home to every night. Yes, she would burn the world to save him, and not the other way around. She would not harm him; not for the grandest wish in the world. She'd sooner plunge Eorzea into misery than to do it to the man she loved. Besides, what had wishing ever done for the fair lady? It was true that good fortune had granted her many boons, but most of the things she possessed she had clawed and fought and bled for herself. That was her mantra, after all--"If you want something done right, do it yourself." And she certainly did.
If she relied on wishes, where would she be today? She'd be a spoiled brat of a noblewoman, depressed and alone back in the Black Shroud with no home, no family, no friends, no job, nothing to her name but a pile of ash and rubble. It was a far cry from the privileged life she held now.
In her mind, there was no hesitation, no deliberation; she processed all these thoughts in a matter of milliseconds, giving the parchment the same cursory look-over and brief moment of contemplation anyone would give their every-day junk mail. She crumpled the piece of parchment, tossing it haphazardly into the small wastebasket next to the foot of her desk without a second thought. She then returned her attention to the tall stack idle paperwork piled onto her desk, her rosy lips resting in a faint smile.
She would achieve all the things for which she yearned, and she would do it herself, as always. She didn't need anyone's help, and she certainly did not need to wish on stars.
RE: Your character is granted three wishes, but the third wish... - Roswyn - 08-07-2014
(08-06-2014, 08:02 PM)Nero Wrote: ...must inflict harm on the individual they care about the most.
Her wishes would be to help the person she cares about most so there would be no point to accepting the wishes since they would hurt that person in the end.
RE: Your character is granted three wishes, but the third wish... - Sophia_Grave - 08-07-2014
Sophia would definitely use it. Sacrificing one for the needs of many is practically an automatic choice. Problem is, I have no idea what the exact wish would be. Wishes tend to be messy since there's so much involved with making them happen :/
RE: Your character is granted three wishes, but the third wish... - Val - 08-07-2014
Val's.. .. well. Val's wishes would be incredibly easy. He'd want an unlimited amount of wealth and the ability to sleep with any woman he wanted--assuming he didn't already have Faye.
If he was currently with Faye, then he'd never take them for mostly the same reasons as listed above by her. While the two characters are vastly different in nature and mannerisms, they are both very much the same when you get down to it. She was, and has been, the only individual that didn't turn him away or seek to use him or gain any benefits from him. She didn't try to take advantage of his ignorance, constantly does everything she can to make him a better person, and failing that she'd be perfectly fine with keeping him how he is. What's more, she asks for nothing in return aside from his faithfulness--and he happily delivers.
Val once told someone that if Faye asked him to drown everyone in the world in the ocean, he'd find a way to do it. He'd spend the rest of his life trying to find a way to do it. He would far rather she be happy than himself, especially if the consequence is that he'd no longer have her.
RE: Your character is granted three wishes, but the third wish... - Nebbs - 08-07-2014
My character (Nebula) being a witch and beleving in such things, gave her love (Ilwe'ran) a wish that he had to use before midnight. She then granted that wish to the best of her ability. The consequences of that wish have provide ongoing RP for months. Ask Ilwe if it was worth it
RE: Your character is granted three wishes, but the third wish... - Faye - 08-07-2014
I'm not going to bother writing up a scenario for my other characters as it would be too brief/vague or much too similar in Faye's, but I'll give some insight into the others:
Much like Sophia, Ael would use the wishes. I don't really know if the person he cares for most would be himself or any member of his family; it's a toss up. Either way, though, he'd follow through, no matter how severe the consequence. (That s, assuming he actually believed wishes truly worked and with no more strings attached--though I can't imagine that would be the case). He believes the needs of the many--or the will of Garlemald, rather--outweigh the needs of the few, himself included. I don't know what exactly he wished for, but at least one wish would be for the benefit of Garlemald. If the second wish wasn't used on that, he would then surely use it to wish for something nice for himself.
Unmei would absolutely not use the wishes. Unlike Ael she'd probably blindly assume they really work, with or without more in the fine print, but she could never bring herself to hurt anyone, especially not the person she cares for the most--Cyrus. If it weren't for the stipulation of hurting someone else, she could contemplate using the wish to helps others, but she could never validate using any wish on herself. Even if Cyrus was willing to face whatever punishment to let her use the wishes to help herself or help othes, Unmei would still refuse.
Shadiyah would not use the wishes, either. Her only real motives in life are to try to make others miserable, and try to find some peace for herself. Melfice is the person she cares for the most, and her desire to please him far outweighs her need to make others unhappy, and she incidentally finds some peace in her life with him. If the wishes had no stipulation, Shade would likely use one wish to make others miserable and another to make herself happy. But then again, I think she's had enough experiences with wishes and the like to know it's never something to dabble in; the last time she tried to summon a Voidsent to do her bidding didn't really end well for her.
RE: Your character is granted three wishes, but the third wish... - Ilwe'ran - 08-07-2014
In fact, Nebula gave three wishes to Ilwe to use before midnight. While Nebbs Nelieves in such a thing, Ilwe is a really drown to earth man and instead of thinking that she would really grant those wishes, he thought that she wanted him to talk about what was important for him. So, without being conscious they would be granted, he did two wishes (the third one came after midnight, but I can say that it has been granted as well in its own way).
First wish was to allow him to love her. They had some tough moment and they were almost separated by differents events more than once. Though, Nebbs never rejected his feelings and nobody ever managed to separate them in the end.
Second wish was to.. Have a family with her within a year. And she granted that wish, IC Nebbs just gave birth to twins (IRL Nebbs asked Ilwe about his wishes in febuary).
Third wish wasn't detrimental, he wished to see her smile every morning as he would wake up. Even though this wish was done after midnight, she still smile to him.
No harmful wish there, but if that had to happen, I think he wouldn't use any wish, he cares too much of the people he likes for accepting to hurt them selfishly.
RE: Your character is granted three wishes, but the third wish... - Berrod Armstrong - 08-07-2014
"Uh. Can't wish for more wishes or nothin' like that? Well awright...I wish we always have a lotta gil on hand so that we never run out. It sounds greedy but in Ul'Dah, it's how life goes. Fer a second one...I wish the Eggheads'd stop tryin' ta invade us an' cause trouble. I bet that'd fix a lot in th'world. Third, I wish I kick Caleb's arse the next time we spar, he won th'last two an' it's gettin' annoyin'!"
Simple man, simple wants.
Third wish requirement fulfilled!
RE: Your character is granted three wishes, but the third wish... - Dogberry - 08-07-2014
The most important person in Dogberry's life right now is Dhemgeim. His wish, however, would be for Laughing Bird, his ex-fiancee and mother of his child, to come back to life (this is assuming Alladin rules don't apply). Dogberry isn't really sure that he'd go back with her, (in fact, seeing what Dogberry has become might make Laughing Bird not want to get back with him) but he would absolutely want to raise his child with her. I'm sure for Dhemgeim, watching her boyfriend raise a child with another woman would not be pleasant. Especially since he wouldn't even hesitate in making the wish.
Ultimately, Dogberry would do it for his son. He is a terrible deadbeat father, but he does care about him in his own way. If Laughing Bird were around, she would at least shame him into doing the right thing.
RE: Your character is granted three wishes, but the third wish... - Mercurias - 08-07-2014
"Counter-question. If I wish for two shit things to happen to me, will my loved one have the chance at something good?Â
If so, then I wish for the inanimate object with the most sentimental value to me destroyed irreparably, in front of me, because of something I did. The next wish is for someone from my past to show up and just...Damage me. Damage my standing with others, damage how I feel about myself these days, and tear open all the old wounds so that I feel just like I used to all that time ago.
In return, I wish for her family to start to remember her the next time they see her. REALLY remember who is and that she's their's. It doesn't have to be all at once, but het her have the chance to get back a little of what Carteneau took from her."
RE: Your character is granted three wishes, but the third wish... - Clover - 08-07-2014
Would your character use the wishes to begin with? Clover, no. K'mih would be very confused as to what to wish for, and very scared to try. So no.
-What would your character wish for? There's only one thing Clover wants: to see her grandpa again. Considering that the harm done must be equivalent to the wish, that means someone would have to die for her grandpa to come back to life *sweatdrops*. Which is why Clover wouldn't make a wish to begin with. She's not a murder and that's not the kind of person she wants her grandpa to see in her.
K'mih wishes for her family to have happy lives, and she thinks it can be done without magical wishes. What's more, the fact that someone (likely K'nahli) has to be harmed kinda defeats the purpose of her wish to start with *amused*.
Extra: My hyur Voyce would likely use the wishes and he'd likely harm himself. I don't know what he'd ask for, however, as I don't know him that well.
RE: Your character is granted three wishes, but the third wish... - K'nahli - 08-07-2014
(08-07-2014, 08:40 AM)Clover Wrote: My hyur Voyce would likely use the wishes and he'd likely harm himself.
Oh God I can't stop laughing wwwwwwwwww
Edit:
Oh never mind, I just read this:
"For selfish, sociopathic, or narcissistic characters, the third wish must inflict harm on themselves."
Still..! >w<